Today, a viewer can access a variety of programs on hundreds of different channels. A number of sources can broadcast programs via airwaves, cable, or by satellite. A common problem associated with having so many available programs and channels is finding a desired program to view. Many viewers simply “channel surf” or view programs sequentially until they find a desirable program. Although some viewers find channel surfing enjoyable, many viewers prefer a more direct method for selecting a program to view.
One method of finding or selecting a program is by using an electronic program guide (EPG). An EPG is an interactive, on-screen graphical user interface (GUI) that provides a number of options for a viewer. For example, a viewer can use a GUI to program the EPG to list channels by channel number, or list programs in alphabetical order, or list channels or programs by category, or list channels or programs by favorites. A disadvantage with such a method is that the viewer must program the EPG to provide the list in a desired manner. That is, the manual process can be quite complex for a viewer who may not be accustomed to all the features of the EPG.
Furthermore, viewers tend to watch the same channels or programs (“favorites”). Current EPGs are difficult for viewers to program manually a list of favorites. For example, a viewer may not be inclined to know all the times and channels of their favorite programs. As such, the viewer would have to navigate through the EPG it to determine the times and channels of their favorite programs. Such a process can be cumbersome and prevent viewers from using the list of favorites feature.
In addition, current TV broadcast systems have limited resources to determine the habits of viewers. For instance, to determine how long or how many times a viewer accesses the same channel or program, the TV broadcast system must maintain extensive statistics. Hence, a limitation of current TV broadcast systems is that they have limited resources to store and maintain such statistics. Consequently, if one statistical count is limited to a fixed size, e.g., a byte, the statistical count will roll over at a maximum count of “255.” Thus, the statistical data may become inaccurate after a certain count.